Life and death of Harold and Maude

This was a very interesting and compelling movie. I was on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next. I don’t think I have ever seen a movie like this. When it first started Harold was lighting candles and I figured it had to do something will a funeral. Next he hung himself. And now my expectations were thrown off. I didn't know what to expect after this.

One of the themes that I noticed was life and death. You have Harold who was depressed and was fascinated with dying. He found different ways to commit suicide and thought it was funny. This may be because of his mother neglecting him. I could be wrong but that is what I understand from it. And then you had Maude who was so full of life. Her favorite thing to do was watch plants grow; watch life. This is somewhat strange because they both went to funerals for different reasons it seems. Harold and Maude became friends after this. Harold had a friend but more so attention that he wanted.  Watching this movie was like watching a game of volley ball. A ball, which in this case represented life and death, that was being volley back and forth from one side of the court to the other.

One item that represented this life and death so well was the tree.  A living thing but it was dying. Maude say that the tree was dying and wanted to move it somewhere else so she could preserve its life. In way this symbolized her saving Harold. Harold needed saving.

When Harold discovers his love for Maude he is changed and moved by this. For once he was thinking of something other than death. He loves Maude so much that he wants to marry her despite her age and appearance. Then the movie takes a turn for the worst. It was Maude’s 80^th birthday and she took tablets to die. She reveals this to Harold and he begs her not to die. This was another twist in the plot from life to death. After Maude dies Harold drives his car off of a cliff. The audience thinks that Harold had performed his last and final suicide trick, but he doesn’t.  Harold chose to live and walks off into the distance dancing and playing his banjo.

I didn’t see comedy in this film but it was very moving and sweet. In a way, Harold carries on Maude’s spirit in the end. Not the best ending but a very good one.